(what is) Film
(what is) Film is an American animated TV series created by Elliot Strange and Owen Emerson. Production This was among one of two projects Elliot Strange pitched to Comedy Central, the other being The Lockhorns. Strange worked on the latter first because he wanted to experiment with the kind of format he felt worked best and then apply it to more original projects. The show was based on an independent comic-strip (later two-issue comic) Strange produced when he was in colleg, up until 1994. Novice adapted the strip into a pilot for a live-action series that would be pitched to NBC after the end of Novice's previous program The Late Night Sessions, but following a fatal stunt in the last episode Strange and Emerson disassociated themselves from Novice. Strange has also claimed that he and Novice got along poorly and that Novice engaged in a fistfight that led to him losing two of his teeth and his skull getting cracked. Strange and Emerson retooled the pilot and kept it on the side until it was time for Strange to pitch it to Comedy Central after Strange's then series The Lockhorns concluded. (what is) Film was produced by The Corning/Emerson Group, a pseudonym used by Elliot Strange and Owen Emerson to avoid detection by Lilly Laney and Frank Novice following their hostile takeover attempts on the former two properties. Bernie Brillstein and Brad Grey helped produce the show as well through their label Brillstein-Grey Entertainment (later Brad Grey Television). Home Box Office passed on airing the show, but they did co-produce it through their HBO Downtown Productions label after it was picked up by Comedy Central (and remained until it dissolved in 2001.) Film Roman was Strange's original choice for producing the show's in-house animation, but Strange went with Adelaide Productions instead after they offered him a better deal. Columbia-Tristar Domestic Television signed on as another producer since they managed Adelaide Productions at the time. The opening and closing themes of the show were provided by Chevelle before they became a mainstream success. Strange found their debut album while browsing a Christian bookstore and loved it so much, he offered to use two of their songs for the show. Because the band signed to Epic, which is managed by Sony (who co-produced the show), the deal proved to be necessary. Before 1999, only the show's title-card appeared and the credits ran in silence. Mike Post composed the rest of the music for the show. The show debuted in the fall of 1998 and ended in early 2003. The show originally lasted until 2001, but fan interest helped to revive the show by the end of that year. Premise The series centers around Wes Shapiro, a sheltered man who travels to Hollywood after his controlling parents pass away. Having never seen anything resembling a movie or a TV show (let alone a TV set), he decides to learn more about it, only to get accidentally embroiled in a movie deal with Allan Smith, who wants Wes to make a movie based on his past life. Wes agrees to do it to get a better understanding of film, and in doing so, he learns of the dark side of filmmaking. In between each episode is a made up film trailer for a movie that correlates with each episode. Characters Main * Wes T. Shapiro (Jason Alexander): A man who has spent a majority of his life at home. His parents forbade him from watching television and forced him to study. Being completely naive to the world of cinema, he's often the subject of ridicule by movie buffs and due to a lack of contact with other individuals, he's somewhat shy and insecure. In spite of his shortcomings, Wes is able to make it in the world of film and has garnered some acclaim. He sports an orange t-shirt with a black jacket, kahkis and black dress shoes, and he has curly hair. Wes' name is a mix of the names of Howard West and George Shapiro, executive producers for Seinfeld. * Allan Smith (John Vernon): A disgruntled movie producer who hires Wes out of desperation. Allan was once well respected, but due to him getting tied to various flops, he was blackballed and is forced to work under an assumed name. While strict and at times unreasonable, Allan does have good intentions and he tries to help Wes in varying ways. Allan's name is a pun on Alan Smithee, a pseudonym created by directors who wish to disown films they're tied to. His appearance mirrors that of Christopher Collins, with a black suit, shoes and pants, blue dress shirt and slightly balding hairline. Supporting * Joel Morrow (Howard Morris): Wes' estranged best friend. Joel used to sneak into Wes' house and the two frequently read comic books together. Joel is somewhat childish and he frequently watches cartoons when he's not hanging with Wes or the others. He often tries to help Wes with his movie, but his advice proves to be unethical most of the time. Joel has shoulder length black hair, a dark grey beanie, a fu manchu moustache, a soul patch, a black t-shirt and grey sweatshorts with sandals. * Monte Yuzna (Andy Dick): Wes' therapist who first appears near the end of season one and becomes a main character by season 2. Wes frequently seeks help from Monte after he is forced to endure endless stress in regards to his projects. It was revealed in season 3 that Monte is a closeted homosexual and he confessed his attraction to Wyatt. Monte has blonde hair with a bowl-cut hairstyle, a white button down short sleeve shirt, tan jeans and blue sneakers. * Wyatt Argnam (Gregory Hines): A dispatched African American soldier who served in the Gulf War and Wes' intern who suffers from severe anger issues. In spite of his angry nature, he does have a soft side and he tries to contribute ideas for Wes' films. Monte confessed his attraction to him and, to the former's surprise, Wyatt accepted it and admitted to being attracted to him, while praising his approach in his seminars. He has short hair, a red sweater with a white vest, light grey kahkis and white sneakers. Wyatt was originally voiced by Gregory Hines until 1999 when he left to participate in Little Bill. Michael Jace replaced him for the rest of the series. * Chelle Polk (Mo Collins): A 16 year old, socially inept girl who admires Wes. She originally wore an orange t-shirt with khaki shorts and black pumps, but in later episodes, she began wearing a dark pink zip-up turtleneck vest, denim jeans and white sneakers. Her parents frequently forced her out of her home so she could make friends. She heard about Wes by chance and liked how he was actually forced to stay indoors. In spite of getting rejected by Wes, Chelle frequently tries to help Wes to get his approval. Throughout the series, Chelle tries desperately to get Wes to like her, subjecting herself to various unorthodox acts (she even lifted weights because he jokingly told her to do so), and more often than not, Wes does give her some attention. * Giles Polk (Michael Richards): Chelle's father who's a TV collector and electronics salesman. He is eventually hired as a technical advisor in Wes' project after proving himself to Allan. He and Chelle hardly get along, although Giles believes that he's doing the right thing when it comes to raising his daughter. He frequently puts his daughter through activities that she doesn't enjoy and he kept her out of the house in an attempt to get her to make friends. In spite of his screw ups, he seems to have some form of care towards his daughter's well-being, but he hardly tries to get input from her in order to become a better father in her eyes. Giles is currently a widow, and it has been implied by Chelle that he drove his wife away. * Les Shapiro (Dee Bradley Baker): Wes' brother. The polar opposite to Wes, he is brimming with confidence, has attended film school and has even met Steven Spielberg (eventually revealed to be a drifter who has the same name as the director). He originally applied for a directing job with Allan Smith, but Wes unintentionally took his spot and Les has vowed to destroy Wes' career, but his attempts at doing so have been at his expense due to his own hubris. Les is an egomaniacal individual who looks down upon anyone who isn't involved in Hollywood and he bullies his fellow workers, even his assistant on a frequent basis. Les supposedly suffered from a fatal stroke in the final episode. Other characters * Lenard Lochmond (Glenn Shadix): An actor who is cast in Wes' film. He makes prominent appearances after season 2 since Wes had enough material to begin hiring actors. Lenard was once a successful indie actor, but the wrong management led to him getting blacklisted, and it traumatized him so badly that for two years, all he could say was a quote from his breakout film. He regained his confidence after punching Jon Schroder (his co-actor who ruined his career). He doesn't appear as often as any of the other characters and is hardly considered to be a main part of the gang. * Agnus Huxley (Eddie Deezen):''' A boy who's in the same class as Chelle,who tries to woo her, only to fall short every time. In spite of her turning him down, he seems to still be within Chelle's circle of friends. He tends to be brutally honest about anything he has to say about Wes and the rest of the gang and hence, they're not very fond of him. * '''Alison Becker (Cynthia Preston): Chelle's best friend. She debuted in (what is) The Boom as the antagonist, where she was the daughter of the owner of the clothing store Chelle was hired to work at. Before Alison could expose Chelle's plan, the two got trapped in the storage closet and after each opened up about their personal issues, they formed a bond and they kept everything that happened a secret. * Josie Kern (Antionette Spolar): Chelle's other friend. Very little is known about her or why she became friends with Chelle. She appeared frequently in the first two seasons, but her appearances began to lessen in the following seasons. (what is) Baseball marks her final speaking role, and she has since only made small cameos in select episodes. It has been claimed that Chelle was forced by her father to hang out with Josie, and that the two indifferently hung out with one another, but after Chelle and Alison's friendship became known, she and Josie parted ways. * Chance (Nicole Parker): A temporary muse Wes hired in order to get some inspiration for his movie. While she was very attractive, she was unable to do anything beyond that factor. Wes helped her discover her true potential, and she left California to learn how to become a pilot. She made a cameo appearance in (what is) Baseball, but has since disappeared completely. * John Schroder (Neil Flynn): A comedic actor who is considered to be the most hated actor in Hollywood. This is due to his racial insensitivity, giant ego, making fun of dead celebrities and creating a series of ill-received movies. He first appears in (who is) The Actor, when Wes casts him in his movie with no prior knowledge of his infamy and had to go to great lengths to get him out of the project. He plays another major role in (what is) A Road Trip when he attempts to stop Wes and his friends from destroying the copies of a sequel to one of his movies. It has been implied that Schroder destroyed Allan Smith's career prior to the start of the series. He hasn't had any major roles since the two aforementioned episodes, though he did play a minor part in (what is) Baseball where it's hinted that Wyatt might've killed him after he made Chelle's team lose. * Emmett Yuzna (Richard Bull): Monte's father and a Christian priest. He is highly devoted to the teachings of Jesus Christ, though he proves that he cares deeply for his son. The two argued frequently in regards to Monte's sexual orientation, but after learning that his faith would prevent him from being truly happy and that he himself could burn in hell due to established technicalities, he abandoned his church and he became a male stripper, much to Monte's embarrassment. * Otis Argnam (Bill Cosby): Wyatt's father and the pastor at a local church. His disfavor for homosexuals stems not because of his faith, but because it prevents people from raising offspring. He and Wyatt were never close when growing up together, in fact, Wyatt broke his father's hands at one point in his life. After nearly getting killed by Wyatt, who believed that his father was dead, the two reconcile and Otis gives Wyatt his blessing for the wedding. Following the wedding, it's revealed that Otis abandoned his pastoral duties and has fled to Vermont to live with his father. * Mr. Shapiro (Thomas F. Wilson): Wes' father. Along with Mrs. Shapiro, he kept Wes from leaving the house so Wes could focus on his studies. However, he didn't hold that adage as strictly as Wes' mother did, and he even defended Wes from whatever punishments Mrs. Shapiro wanted to inflict upon him. He died (hinted to be because he drank chocolate milk mixed with cyanide) when Wes was entering his early adulthood. Mr. Shapiro only appears in (what is) Respect via flashbacks and the episode's climax. * Mrs. Shapiro (Florence Henderson): Wes' mother. A strict and often imposing figure, she was responsible for sheltering Wes for most of his life. Her reasons for doing so was attributed to the death of her and Mr. Shapiro's previous child. She responded to Wes' pleas to leave the house with immense hostility, but it has been revealed that she did care for Wes very much, which is proven when Wes finds a gift she planned to give him when he turned 25. Due to the shock of losing her husband, she killed herself by slitting her throat out of grief. * John J. J. Schmidt (Stuart Charno): One of Giles' friends. The two are seen together the most often throughout the series, though he never spoke until (what is) Baseball. His nam (as well as Jacob's) are puns on the children's song John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt. Jacob is apparently his brother (or blood cousin) * Jacob J. Schmit: Is apparently related to John and is a friend of Giles. He only appeared in (what is) Baseball. Very little is known about him. Cancellation/Aftermath The show ended in late 2001 after Strange's contract expired, with reruns continuing until mid-2002. Fearing that the show would become stale, he felt that ending the show was for the best. In 2004, Lilly Laney and Frank Novice filed a lawsuit against Elliot Strange regarding ownership of the original pilot. Novice accused Strange of using a modified version of his original draft for the show's concept. Novice and Laney won the loyalty rights to the show as a result, and it put Strange's company in debt, leading it to become dormant for nearly 12 years. Home Media Releases For many years, due to ownership issues (Sony conflicting with the then jointly own Comedy Central (Time Warner and Viacom) the show was never given a proper home media release. A VHS set containing the first two seasons was released in 2000, but is now out of print. Shout! Factory (in cooperation with Sony Pictures Home Entertainment since Sony acquired home media rights to the show) released a boxset of the series in 2016.